Ever written to Dear Abby or any other columnist?

[hectorberlioz]

Out with the secrets guys...

[Mercutio]

Nope. Once in a while I read the one in the Philly paper and (usu.) disagree with the advice!

[hectorberlioz]

Me too...she's never harsh enough

Recently (as in the past half year) a boy of thirteen told her that he wanted a leg or an arm amputated...but that he was afraid of his parents.
She told him to cut the cloumn out and show it to them, to talk to them about it!

[Lotesse]

Me too...she's never harsh enough

Recently (as in the past half

Originally Posted by hectorberlioz

year) a boy of thirteen told her that he wanted a leg or an arm amputated...but that he was afraid of his parents.
She told him to cut the cloumn out and show it to them, to talk to them about it!

You have GOT to be kidding. This is true? Did the boy mean it, or was he just being intentionally provocative? What kind of person just "feels like" amputating a body part, is this some new trend or something? What the hell is the MATTER with people?!

[hectorberlioz]

Originally Posted by Lotesse

Me too...she's never harsh enough

Recently (as in the past half

You have GOT to be kidding. This is true? Did the boy mean it, or was he just being intentionally provocative? What kind of person just "feels like" amputating a body part, is this some new trend or something? What the hell is the MATTER with people?!

Not kidding. You'd think Abby would've said something a little more clear headed...
I think the kid was joking...some things I've read on there just can't be true.

[Bombadillo]

What? One of my most common daydreams for years has been how awesome I would be with a peg-leg. I'm dead serious. I picked out the perfect spot, at the bottom of my calf muscle, where I would prefer to be tragically bitten by a shark. Then my prosethetic could fit comfortably and the peg-leg would still look long and cool enough. I would kick so much ass!

I wrote to Santa Claus once. And one of my favorite columns is Beakman and Jax in the Sunday comics section, even though that's kiddie science experiments and not advice; they're still mailing in questions to 'em.

[tolkienfan]

Actually I read in the paper that it actually is a real (disease?) Some people really do want one or more of their limbs amputated for no real reason. I forgot most of the article it didn't really interest me much but you can probably look it up. By the way I do usually agree mostly with her advice.

[hectorberlioz]

Well she rarely gives advice you could 'object' to. She's usually safe

My favorite columnist though is John Rosemond. He writes about Parenting etc...a pretty tough hardliner, but he gets it just right.
Anyone else read Carolyne Hax?

[tolkienfan]

The John Rosemond ones are funny! My mom reads it though.

[Millane]

Originally Posted by Bombadillo

What? One of my most common daydreams for years has been how awesome I would be with a peg-leg. I'm dead serious. I picked out the perfect spot, at the bottom of my calf muscle, where I would prefer to be tragically bitten by a shark. Then my prosethetic could fit comfortably and the peg-leg would still look long and cool enough. I would kick so much ass!

so theres no reason to this whatsoever, sometimes i wish for **** like a broken arm so i can get off work and get a sick worksafe compo payout (re: free money ) but you want your foot removed "by a shark" because it would be cool?????

[Lotesse]

DUDE! I think he was being facetious...

[Bombadillo]

No, not really. Maybe half and half. I did look for the article that TF mentioned, and found it, but forgot to bookmark it to paste here later. Here's a little intro to a documentary on the disorder that plagarized from the article though. Apparently it's called "body integrity identity disorder," and people with it feel that having a complete body compromises their true identity; they feel unfulfilled until they cut off one of their limbs. But it's just a daydream for me, not an obsession or feeling of unfulfillment. That would be just crazy. Really though, no one else thinks one-legged pirates are better than normal pirates? It's always pretty cool to have a peg leg. It adds character, or whatever.

[Lotesse]

Then you, my friend, are quite possibly certifiably insane. I have known many people in my lifetime, have become familiar with many various sub-cultures and been exposed to many different ideas, and have been traveling around the world practically since I was born, and in all this time NEVER have I ever heard of peg-legs being in any way fasionable, cool or "nifty". I'm gonna just have to let myself believe that you're "pulling our leg", or whatever, pun intended you nut-job!

[Bombadillo]

Um, alright. There's a one-legged intructor at my dojo, and everyone there knows that his prosthetic just compounds his coolness. I heard a story that it flew off once as my Sensei was demonstrating a move on him at a seminar. (It was an ariminage variant, for anyone who knows what that is anyway. Something vaguely like a combo between a clothesline and chokeslam, where he got swung around and forced to flip backward.) Think about that guy man--you know it's awesome!

Anyway, uh, Dear Abby usually doesn't interest me because she almost always tells her writers to just talk about their conflict with the other party involved. Most often she's right to say so, but it isn't particularly interesting to read that advice all the time. Last night I came across an advice column called Dear Dirty Man, where the writer is a sleazeball advising everyone in the most sleazy and unadvizable ways possible. It was funny as anything, but probably over PG-13.

[Lotesse]

Surely it was awesome, indeed! My point is, inTENtionally removing a portion of one's own appendage is just outright whacko. BTW, Bombadillo, check out that "insults" thread, it is hilARious; if you feel like insulting me back bring it ON, buddy!

[Bombadillo]

Originally Posted by Lotesse

Surely it was awesome, indeed! My point is, inTENtionally removing a portion of one's own appendage is just outright whacko. BTW, Bombadillo, check out that "insults" thread, it is hilARious; if you feel like insulting me back bring it ON, buddy!

Oh... I just noticed that thread an hour ago, and I wish I could insult you, really, but I have to pack for a vacation. I probably won't get to it while you're on tonight, though I plan on staying up late.

BTW, what time zone are you in anyway? It's hard to figure that out with some mooters, like you, who are on at all hours.

EDIT: Whoops. That was meant to be a PM.

[Lotesse]

Originally Posted by Bombadillo

BTW, what time zone are you in anyway? It's hard to figure that out with some mooters, like you, who are on at all hours.

Ahh, but that's the thing, Bombadillo; I am inscrutable, enigmatic, un-figure-outable. My motives are impossible to discern, my whereabouts remains shrouded in conspiratorial mystery, my- oh, all right. It's Pacific time, I'm in L.A. as it so clearly states right under my avvie there. Where are YOU at, oh question-asker?

[hectorberlioz]

You guys are funny.


Anyways, Miss Manners is another columnist I read. Talk about loaded with laughs

I alos read Political columnists, but lately I've been slacking...I get too emotional...to where It isnt my own limbs that I want amputated

[Rosie Gamgee]

Originally Posted by Bombadillo

What? One of my most common daydreams for years has been how awesome I would be with a peg-leg. I'm dead serious. I picked out the perfect spot, at the bottom of my calf muscle, where I would prefer to be tragically bitten by a shark.

I met a guy with a peg-leg once, you know. Yeah:

He had a peg-leg, an iron hook, and an eye-patch. He was so picturesce I just had to get a picture. Now, I'm not one to just ask someone out of the blue if I can take their picture, so I opted to get chummy first.
"Hey, man," I said, gesturing vaguely to his awesome peg-leg. "Awesome peg-leg, dude. How'd it happen?"
He smiled, the old salt, and grinned in a perfect pirate brogue, "Well, ye see, this one day the skipper tells us we're to weigh anchor off an island notorious for its shark-infested bays. Well, sure enough, I'm helpin' to pull the boat up onto the sand so's the cap'n don't get 'is boots wet, and I gets me leg bit off by a shark."
"Wow," I said. He was looking off into the distance now, paying me no mind, and I thought I'd get to know him a little better before asking for his picture. "So, man, what happened to your hand, there?"
He turned to me and smiled, the old salt, and intoned, "Ah, this! Well, we was out on the bonnie Caribbean waters one day, and the skipper decides we're to go pirate-hunting. We found ourselves an easy catch and engaged 'em in a wee battle, and before they surrendered a stray bit o' grape-shot took me me hand clear off. Soon after I got this iron hook." He shook it a bit and looked very piratey.
"Wow," I said. I had already asked about his other pirate-like attributes, so I decided to go the last mile and said, "Dude; so, what happened to you eye, man?"
He looked at me and smiled, the old salt, and answered, "Well, I'll tell ye. One fair day we was comin' into port and a seagull landed in the rigging above me and pooped in me eye."
"Wow," I said. "And that was cause enough to take your eye out?"
He turned back to me and grinned, the old salt, and said, "Aye. Ye see, that was the first day with me new hook."

[hectorberlioz]

Originally Posted by Rosie Gamgee

I met a guy with a peg-leg once, you know. Yeah:

He had a peg-leg, an iron hook, and an eye-patch. He was so picturesce I just had to get a picture. Now, I'm not one to just ask someone out of the blue if I can take their picture, so I opted to get chummy first.
"Hey, man," I said, gesturing vaguely to his awesome peg-leg. "Awesome peg-leg, dude. How'd it happen?"
He smiled, the old salt, and grinned in a perfect pirate brogue, "Well, ye see, this one day the skipper tells us we're to weigh anchor off an island notorious for its shark-infested bays. Well, sure enough, I'm helpin' to pull the boat up onto the sand so's the cap'n don't get 'is boots wet, and I gets me leg bit off by a shark."
"Wow," I said. He was looking off into the distance now, paying me no mind, and I thought I'd get to know him a little better before asking for his picture. "So, man, what happened to your hand, there?"
He turned to me and smiled, the old salt, and intoned, "Ah, this! Well, we was out on the bonnie Caribbean waters one day, and the skipper decides we're to go pirate-hunting. We found ourselves an easy catch and engaged 'em in a wee battle, and before they surrendered a stray bit o' grape-shot took me me hand clear off. Soon after I got this iron hook." He shook it a bit and looked very piratey.
"Wow," I said. I had already asked about his other pirate-like attributes, so I decided to go the last mile and said, "Dude; so, what happened to you eye, man?"
He looked at me and smiled, the old salt, and answered, "Well, I'll tell ye. One fair day we was comin' into port and a seagull landed in the rigging above me and pooped in me eye."
"Wow," I said. "And that was cause enough to take your eye out?"
He turned back to me and grinned, the old salt, and said, "Aye. Ye see, that was the first day with me new hook."

That's Kate Rusby in your avatar.